Anime Collector: Starting With the Malevolent Shrine-Chapter 217 ⟴ This Damn Corruption

"Hahahaha... Is this what they call a distinguished chef from the prestigious Tōtsuki Culinary Academy? You dare call this conventional cooking worthy of a magician's work?"

Asahi Saiba, laughing uncontrollably while clutching his stomach, strode to Kōjiro's station and disdainfully dumped the remaining food.

Though Judge Kishibe's evaluation standards were strict, the dish had undeniable flaws. This vegetable dish wasn't innovative — it was a haphazard creation by a chef who had lost the drive to improve.

"Cooking that clings to tradition is destined for the garbage bin." Asahi retrieved his specialized cooking tools.

Even incomplete due to theft, they were more than enough to deal with these people!

When Terunori tried to argue, Kōjiro stopped him, "Kuga, stay calm... he's not wrong. Years of being a head chef made me fear change. My failure was inevitable — this Judge Kishibe is better than me."

He sighed helplessly, leaving the other chefs stunned. Their gazes, filled with reluctant reverence, drifted toward the judge.

Seated at the judge's table, Kishibe's face darkened. He knew nothing about cooking — the real reason for their failure was gender.

And as for this Asahi Saiba, after all his boasting, who knew what expression he'd wear when he was eliminated?

After a brief preparation, Asahi presented his dish, sneering as he passed by Kōjiro. It was time to teach these people the dark rules of the culinary world!

"Failed!"

The cold verdict shattered the young man's smile and delusions, his expression freezing like those who had failed before him.

"Next!"

Though disbelief flickered across his face, Asahi neither shouted nor screamed. He simply stepped back, watching as Kishibe dumped his food.

Was this... the brutal reality of culinary selection?

Terunori and Eishi's group observed the dispirited man with pity while casting questioning glances at Judge Kishibe.

If both Asahi and Kōjiro's dishes had failed, whose cooking could possibly surpass theirs? Just as anxiety began to settle over the room, a ray of hope emerged.

"Pass!"

In that instant, all eyes landed on a nervous figure. The timid Megumi Tadokoro could hardly believe her ears, pointing at herself in shock.

"Yes, you—Me... Megumi Tadokoro, you pass." Upon seeing Megumi, Kishibe immediately declared her success, encouraging those behind her who were on the verge of leaving.

Witnessing even a bottom-ranked student like Megumi pass reignited hope in previously despondent contestants like Yūki Yoshino and Ryōko Sakaki.

Then the passes began to flow as though they were being handed out for free.

"Yūki Yoshino, pass!"

"Ryōko Sakaki, pass!"

"Urara Kawashima, pass!"

"Ikumi Mito, pass!"

The consecutive passes left earlier failures stunned.

When the Tōtsuki students realized that both Urara and Megumi—two bottom-ranked contestants — had passed, they could no longer contain their disbelief.

Megumi was always nervous, barely avoiding expulsion. Urara's cooking skills were highly questionable — she used to be nothing more than the host for Shokugeki matches at Tōtsuki. How could she possibly pass?!

"This is complete corruption!" Asahi bellowed, his eyes bulging as he jabbed a finger at Kishibe.

"If my cooking couldn't pass, how could these garbage chefs possibly pass judgment?"

Kishibe's expression turned icy. He was fulfilling his duties for Inspector General Daiki, yet someone dared to slander him.

"Someone get him out of here!"

At his command, two burly men grabbed Asahi and unceremoniously threw him out.

The remaining chefs could only fume silently, their anger directed at Kishibe. In this culinary selection, there were no proper ingredients, no utensils, not even clean plates — they had to be hand-washed. But security guards? There were plenty of those.

"How... how dare this judge act like this?!" Terunori exclaimed in shock, his voice trembling at the revelation of such corruption.

"How could a mere judge so blatantly show favoritism? Where is the justice in this?"

"What should we do now?" Eishi asked, his tone heavy with uncertainty.

Given Kishibe's evaluation method, earning approval felt harder than climbing to heaven. The entire venue's atmosphere instantly turned frigid.

When Sōma Yukihira's turn came, he had no idea what had transpired earlier — he only noticed that many contestants had passed.

Confidently, he stepped up, but less than ten minutes later, he left dejected.

"Is this what Dad meant by 'proper'?"

Too proper?

The judge merely touched the food with his chopsticks once before failing him. When he tried to protest, security guards swiftly surrounded him.

What stung even more was that the woman after him passed! And she wasn't even a chef — Yaeko Minegasaki was a real estate company manager!

"I get it now. Dad wanted to show me that even 'proper' competitions are corrupt, let alone ordinary ones. I'll just stick to Yukihira Diner and focus on studying cooking. Forget everything else."

He even doubted that guy Daiki could pass.

Crushed, Sōma slung his bag over his shoulder and left, thinking of the culinary school acceptance letter his father had arranged.

He tore it up on the spot — what was the point of such a letter? Even after graduating, these culinary selections wouldn't choose you.

As he mulled over the corruption he'd face after graduation, his resolve solidified. He cast aside all other thoughts and committed himself to returning home.

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Meanwhile, after Daiki and Alice's group stayed late, Mrs. Yukinoshita eventually sent them all home.

Itsuki, burdened with anxious thoughts, struggled to figure out how to explain everything to her other sisters — she had to find a way to surpass the Yukinoshita family!

When Daiki returned home, he found Iroha pulling Ayase into his bedroom, preparing various "ingredients".

His mouth twitched — he hadn't expected Iroha to be serious.

"Oh, right, Senpai. I bought this collar earlier. I'm not quite sure how to use it, so you figure it out first. And from now on, no entering the bedroom!"

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Iroha blinked her beautiful eyes and, tugging the blushing Ayase along, closed the bedroom door.

Just then—

Knock! Knock! Knock!

A sudden knocking sound echoed through the house.

Daiki, still holding the collar, opened the front door with a puzzled look.

Standing outside, Tsuki Uzaki quickly bowed as the door opened and said, "Sorry for the sudden visit. I'm Tsuki Uzaki. I mainly came to find you because..."

Before she could finish, Tsuki's gaze landed on the leash attached to the collar.

Her eyes followed it upward until they stopped on the collar — and then on that man from the other night!